"Be Still and Know..." Psalm 46:10 (part 1)

Have you ever noticed how noisy our world is? I mean, there are “noise makers” all around us—from TVs, computers, cell phones to radios, mp3 players, ipods, cd players—all of them with their noise-making capabilities. Whether we are at work or play, there is noise of some kind.

As I write this, the washer has finally stopped making its noise, and there is at least some quietness…at least until Carter needs me again.

With all the noise around us, I wonder if we have forgotten how to listen to the voice of the one that really matters. I started reading Wayne Cordeiro’s book Leading on Empty this past weekend and came across this quote: “I needed God to quiet every voice but his own.” Can you relate to that? Boy, I sure can.

Sometimes in the busyness of life, the voice of the one who truly matters gets drowned out by the noise. Somewhere along the way, I confused busyness with deep spirituality & productivity; maybe you have, too.

So, what can we do about it? What if we were more intentional about creating time in our lives for silence & solitude? Jesus did: "Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he departed again to the mountain by himself alone."

It is not natural for me to have times of silence & solitude (just to be clear: we are not talking about getting in the lotus position and chanting ohm for three or four hours & seeking to find our navel) in any extended way--I feel lazy, unproductive, and useless. Sure, my devotional times are certainly valuable & indispensible, but an extended period of silence & solitude--that's pushing it for me.

But…it is something I plan to be more intentional about beginning this month--to take time every week & every month to get "unplugged" from the noise of my world…I need it…I need to get unplugged before I short circuit. I wonder, do any of you feel the same way?

Let's journey together this month of December in re-engineering our lives in connecting with Jesus through silence & solitude. To help us, I will draw upon the writings of Mark Driscoll & Wayne Cordeiro and maybe a few others to give us some direction & thoughts to consider as we get "unplugged" from the noise & re-aquainted with the voice that really matters--God's.

A pilgrim on a journey,
Michael